Cola Pot Roast

by Sabrina Snyder

Published on

24 Comments

5 from 5 votes
8
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours 30 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 45 minutes
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Cola Pot Roast, seasoned with easy pantry staples, is tender and savory with a touch of sweetness from a surprise ingredient – a can of coke!

Our Dr. Pepper Pot Roast is a popular smoky-sweet spin on Classic Pot Roast, and now this Cola Pot Roast offers a milder option with a creamy mushroom sauce. It an also be made in the slow cooker or instant pot!

Coca Cola Pot Roast in pot

COLA POT ROAST

We have a variety of pot roast recipes on the site because they are such easy, one-pot meals. You get meat, potatoes, and veggies all in one dish that can be prepped in minutes in the afternoon and simmer away until dinnertime. Plus, you end up with leftovers! This Cola Pot Roast takes just 15 minutes to prepare, and results in a silky, mushroom onion gravy balanced by the sweetness of the soda.

Searing a roast before braising is an important step that you don’t want to skip. You will end up with a better texture and crispy edges to contrast the fork tender inside. Browning the meat also locks in moisture and adds a caramelized flavor that will be enhanced by the coca-cola. Using a large dutch oven makes this an easy task. Just wait until the oil is shimmering hot, and brown the seasoned beef for 4-5 minutes on each side, waiting until the meat comes loose from the pan naturally before flipping it.

For this recipe, I suggest using classic coca-cola. You do not want to substitute diet or low calorie soda when cooking because the artificial sweeteners will taste strange in the finished product. Dry onion soup mix and cream of mushroom soup combine with coca-cola to make the easiest, tastiest gravy for this pot roast without even any measuring!

You can braise Cola Pot Roast on the stovetop to free up your oven space for sides like Easy Beer Bread Muffins or Roasted Broccoli. Once you add everything to the pot including the meat, bring the roast to a boil over medium high heat. After it comes to a boil, move to a back burner over low heat and simmer for about three hours, checking the liquid levels halfway through. Add a little beef broth if it is getting dry.

Shred leftover pot roast and serve on toasted french rolls with a fresh Cucumber Tomato Salad for an easy lunch. Cola Pot Roast would also be delicious served over brown rice or egg noodles if you want to leave out the potatoes. It is an easy way to meal prep for the week!

MORE POT ROAST RECIPES

VARIATIONS ON COLA POT ROAST

  • Meat: Brisket, round, or rump roast can also be used in place of chuck roast as the slow cooking method breaks down these tougher cuts and tenderizes them.
  • Seasoning mix: For a heartier flavor, use a beef stew mix in place of a regular onion soup mix.
  • Condensed Soup: If you aren’t a fan of mushrooms, use condensed cream of onion soup for more onion flavor.
  • Vegetables: Other root vegetables such as parsnips and turnips can be used instead of potatoes. 

Coca Cola Pot Roast serving on plate with potatoes and carrots

Slow Cooker Cola Pot Roast

  • Season chuck roast with salt and pepper and sear on both sides in a large skillet with oil on medium high heat.
  • Arrange the carrots, celery, and potatoes in the slow cooker.
  • Add the seared meat on top of the vegetables.
  • Pour the mixed onion soup mix, cream of mushroom soup, and cola on top of the roast.
  • Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.

Instant Pot Cola Pot Roast

  • Turn on sauté function and sear seasoned beef in oil for 4-5 minutes on each side, then set meat aside.
  • Whisk together the cola, cream of mushroom soup, and onion soup mix. Use 1 cup of the mixture to deglaze the pot and scrape off any brown bits. Leaving brown bits will trigger “burning food” and your pressure cooker won’t get hot enough.
  • Add carrots, celery, and potatoes to the instant pot. Layer the meat on top and pour over the remaining cola mixture.
  • Seal lid and pressure valve. Set to manual high pressure for 45 minutes. Allow pressure to release naturally.

EASY SIDE DISH RECIPES

HOW TO STORE COLA POT ROAST

  • Serve: Cola Pot Roast can be kept at room temperature for up to 2 hours or kept warm in a crock pot for up to 4 hours.
  • Store: Cool Cola Pot Roast completely and transfer to an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat in the oven for best taste.
  • Freeze: Once cooled, place Cola Pot Roast in a sealed freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

Coca Cola Pot Roast serving on plate with potatoes and carrots

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Dinner, then Dessert

Cola Pot Roast

Cola Pot Roast, seasoned with easy pantry staples, is tender and savory with a touch of sweetness from a surprise ingredient - a can of coke!
Yield 8
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours 30 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 45 minutes
Course Dinner
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder
Coca Cola Pot Roast in pot
PrintRate

Ingredients
 

  • 3-4 pounds beef chuck roast
  • 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
  • 3 carrots , cut into 2" chunks
  • 2 stalks celery , chopped
  • 2 russet potatoes , peeled and cut into 2” chunks
  • 1 packet dry onion soup mix (1 ounce)
  • 10.75 can condensed cream of mushroom soup (10.75 ounces)
  • 12 ounces Coca-Cola soda

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
  • Season the chuck roast with the Kosher salt and pepper.
  • Add oil to a large pot on high heat and sear the beef on both sides, about 4-5 minutes on each side.
  • Add the carrots, celery and potatoes around the pot roast.
  • In a medium bowl whisk together onion soup mix, cream of mushroom soup and soda then pour it over the chuck roast.
  • Cover and cook for 3 - 3 ½ hours until tender.

Nutrition

Calories: 409kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 119mg | Sodium: 1032mg | Potassium: 934mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 3889IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 4mg
Keyword: Cola Pot Roast

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About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

See more posts by Sabrina

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your own site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. Hi Sabrina, Is Beef Broth missing from the ingredients? I made this today and the liquid was very thick, light colored, salty and all of the liquid was evaporated. The picture you used above look like the liquid is more brown and liquidity. I used 12 oz of Coke.

    Reply

  2. Everything came out perfectly in our instant pot. Excellent flavor with minimal effort. Thanks so much for our new go to Sunday Family dinner favorite. ??

    Reply

  3. Sabrina, you are a jewel. I have tried many of your recipes and all have been perfect. Thank you so much for sharing your talents and educating me on my cooking skills.

    Many blessings to you and your family.

    Dallas

    Reply

    1. Thank you so much Dallas! Your kind words truly inspire me to create the best recipes for everyone to love. I hope you’ll continue to come back and make me smile.

      Thanks again ???

      Reply

  5. Love how easy this is to make! Thanks for adding the slow cooker and instant pot directions. It’s great to have options!

    Reply

  6. Thank you for the tip about searing the meat before cooking it. It was so tender and juicy. My whole family loved it!

    Reply

  7. prep time was on time now its cooking i change out potatoes with honey gold bite size cant wait for this to be done to tastes

    Reply

    1. There are instructions in the post above. If you want to braise it on the stovetop, add everything to the pot including the meat, bring the roast to a boil over medium high heat. After it comes to a boil, move to a back burner over low heat and simmer for about three hours, checking the liquid levels halfway through. Add a little beef broth if it is getting dry. Enjoy!

      Reply

  11. First of all, girl I love your recipes!!!! Second, I love this recipe! Probably my favorite pot roast recipe ever! The cola gives it only a slight sweetness, yet the gravy doesn’t taste like cola per se, and it also helps with the tenderizing of the meat. You really are one of my absolute favorite chefs, Sabrina!

    Reply

  12. Hi Sabrina,
    This sounds delicious but thyme is mentioned in the instructions but not the ingredients: Is this a typo?

    Reply